Madden NFL 2002 Walkthrough & Strategy Guide

Published: Jan 31, 2001

Teams
St. Louis
Rams

Key Players

Marshall Faulk (HB): He was the league MVP last year, and for good
reason. He's got all the weapons: speed, agility, tackle-breaking ability
and great hands. He's a great rusher and a great receiver, and should contend
for MVP again this season.

Kurt Warner (QB): Warner has one of the strongest, most accurate
arms in the NFL. This leads to few interceptions and scads of yards. Warner's
not the most mobile quarterback, though, so don't try to throw on the run.

The Ram Recivers: All four Ram receivers have excellent speed. Whenever
possible, send them all downfield and heave the ball. No matter how far you
throw it, they'll run underneath.

Money Plays

Offense: Split Backs-Normal
HB Off Tackle: This is a slow-developing play, but can often go for
massive yardage. Faulk takes the handoff from the left backfield position,
heading right. Follow the pulling line up and around the corner. If you can
break a tackle in the secondary, you could be gone for a long gain and a
score.

Offense: Singleback-4WR
Flare Pass: This play uses all of the weapons in the Rams' arsenal,
and what's more, leaves one of them wide open. Bruce and Holt head downfield
on fly patterns, while Proehl runs a slant and Hakim runs a post. This
stretches the defense long down the field. Scan for someone open downfield.
Otherwise, dump the ball off to Faulk coming out of the backfield to the
right. Since the defense is concentrated on the downfield threat, you can
easily pick up twenty to thirty yards after the catch.

Offense: Shotgun-4WR
Slot Flags: Another downfield pass play, this one sends Hakim and
Proehl on posts toward the sidelines. Marshall Faulk runs from behind the
line and posts toward the left sideline. Drop a ball over the coverage to
one of these targets for a long gain.

How to Beat the Rams

The Rams have so many weapons, they're tough to contain. They can hurt
you with the run and pass equally, making them a powerful force, indeed.
Since they have four great receivers, a Nickel formation is your best bet.
This also puts a lot of speed on the field against Faulk, which is key. In
the Nickel, control your best linebacker and cover anything coming out of
the backfield (tight end, halfback, whatever).

Luckily, the Rams' defense is not as good as their offense. You will want
to stay away from running at Grant Wistrom, and throwing at Aeneas Williams.